Aloha!

So far so good! We drove to Dallas last night and spent the night at a hotel, then got on a plane at 8:30 this morning and flew for eight and a half hours (with no food service) to Honolulu!

My handsome husband!

We were all so excited when we landed--seeing the beautiful blue water, crashing waves, palm trees, and bright flowers! We caught a shuttle to the rental car place. I got to drive the mini-van and follow Mike in the suburban. We went looking for some fast food to eat for "lunch" (even though it was 5:30 our body time) and the GPS took us to the Navy exchange/commisary parking lot! I actually teared up when I realized it, thinking "These are my people!" We finally found a strip mall with choices for everyone. Mike and I ate at a Hawaiian BBQ place. My chicken and potato salad were delicious, but I didn't care for the spicy cucumbers. And it was a LOT of food. From there we drove 30 minutes to our camp, and saw so many beautiful sights. It was hard being the driver and having to keep my eyes on the road! Our part of the island is not typically for tourists, just locals. Most of them drive to Honolulu every morning, mostly to work in the service industry. We saw a lot of graffiti, and run-down buildings. The camp itself is awesome--I love it! It used to be a sugar plantation, and the building are over a hundred years old! We met Jimmy and Ashley, who run the camp, and we like them a lot. We ate supper (BBQ sandwiches) in the old plantation house, then sat on the lanai (wrap-around porch) for a brief orientation with Jimmy. From where we sat we could see ocean in one direction and mountains in the other. And there was a wonderful breeze!

Our bunkhouse

Plantation house/dining hall

Jesse and his trees--

Later Mike, Jesse, and I bought groceries for breakfast for the week while the rest of the group walked to the beach. It was a fun evening...even if my body does think it's 1:42 a.m. right now! I'm excited to see what tomorrow brings.